Case: Upper limb radiograph #10637527
Upper limb Beginner
Read this radiograph systematically before revealing the answer. What is the main abnormality?
Image: Hellerhoff via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source · resized and converted to WebP
Tip: scroll or pinch to zoom, drag to pan, and try Invert.
Answer: Metacarpal fracture
What to look for in metacarpal fracture
- A fracture line through a metacarpal: head, neck, shaft or base.
- The fifth metacarpal neck is the commonest site (boxer's fracture), with volar angulation of the head.
- Check for rotation clinically and for associated carpometacarpal dislocation on the lateral view.
Description by the image author (may be in another language): Boxer's fracture of fifth metacarpal bone. In this case not by boxing against something or someone, but by a similar trauma.
Educational case. The diagnosis comes from the image's documented source; the "what to look for" list describes the condition in general and is not a report of this individual image.
